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In this era of superhero fatigue, it’s refreshing to revisit where it all began: 1978’s “Superman”. This was Hollywood’s first big-budget superhero film — so groundbreaking that they literally titled it “Superman: The Movie” just to make sure audiences knew they were about to see something entirely new. Its scope is remarkable, doing things we often credit Marvel for today, like laying the groundwork for future sequels. But the birth of the modern superhero blockbuster happened nearly 50 years ago with “Superman: The Movie,” starring none other than Marlon Brando.
Yes, you read that right. Hollywood icon Marlon Brando gets top billing as Jor-El, Superman’s Kryptonian father — a role that gives him about 15 minutes of screen time in an epic nearly two and a half hours long. Second billing goes to Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, a choice that kicked off the now-familiar trend of casting a bigger star as the villain than the hero. This concept really took hold with 1989’s “Batman”, where Jack Nicholson’s name towered over Michael Keaton’s on the poster.
“Superman” is a classic origin story — or really, the classic origin story. We witness how his parents, Jor-El and Lara, send their infant son to Earth as their doomed planet Krypton meets its end. We see him grow up in Smallville, face the challenges of being different, and, nearly fifty minutes into the film, we finally meet Christopher Reeve’s Clark Kent: the awkward new reporter at the Daily Planet, much to Lois Lane’s annoyance. Clark is instantly smitten with Lois, who doesn’t exactly return the sentiment — at least, not toward bumbling Clark Kent. But when Lois finds herself dangling from a helicopter high above Metropolis, a mysterious figure clad in blue and red appears out of nowhere. With superhuman strength and effortless charm, Superman is introduced to the world.
It’s pretty astonishing what screenwriter Mario Puzo — yes, the same man who gave us “The Godfather” — managed to craft at a time when there was no real blueprint for superhero movies. We get glimpses of life on Krypton, baby Kal-El’s crash-landing on a Kansas farm, and his upbringing by the wholesome Kent family. We see Clark as a lonely teenager, bullied by classmates — except for Lana Lang, who clearly has a soft spot for him. The movie takes its sweet time building Clark’s backstory before shifting to Metropolis, where he’s now a full-grown but perpetually clumsy adult hiding a secret that will change the world.
From that point on, the movie shifts into more familiar superhero territory. Lex Luthor enters the picture as Superman’s first big-screen nemesis — a criminal mastermind with a get-rich-quick scheme so diabolical it’ll cost millions of innocent lives… but who’s counting? The sudden arrival of Superman threatens to ruin his plans, so Lex immediately sets out to discover this “Man of Steel’s” one fatal weakness.
Back then, this was truly a groundbreaking film — not just because it was the first major superhero blockbuster, but because it boasted cutting-edge special effects for its time. The famous flying scenes might have left audiences in 1978 wide-eyed in wonder, and even today they hold up decently, if never quite convincingly by modern standards. The same goes for much of the movie’s visual magic: you can see the clever tricks the filmmakers used to work within the limitations of the era. For example, when Clark leaps off a building and transforms into Superman, it’s done with a simple crossfade that now looks pretty quaint — and honestly, a bit silly.
But even with its dated effects, the movie remains hugely entertaining — thanks in large part to the irresistible chemistry between Lois Lane and Clark Kent/Superman, which serves as the film’s emotional core. It’s safe to say the most iconic moment is their date: an unforgettable sequence that ends with Lois flying hand in hand with Superman above the city lights. It’s a magical scene that would later inspire similar moments in films like “The Snowman”, released a few years later.
Despite being billed below Brando and Hackman, this is very much Christopher Reeve’s movie — even though he doesn’t appear until nearly an hour in. He’s effortlessly charming in both roles: the bumbling, sweet Clark Kent and the heroic, impossibly confident Superman. Still, if the film has an Achilles’ heel, it’s that Superman himself is a bit one-dimensional. He’s basically a god among men, but the movie never really digs into what drives him. He shows up, dons the suit, and starts saving people — but why now? The film never explores that question.
A hero is only compelling if he has a weakness, and in this movie, it’s kryptonite. Lex Luthor, master schemer that he is, manages to get his hands on some, rendering Superman helpless — and giving Luthor the perfect excuse to deliver a classic villain monologue straight out of a James Bond film. But aside from this brief inconvenience — which bizarrely includes Superman being sexually harassed and just laughing it off — he’s never truly in danger. Without real vulnerability, he risks coming across as dull. That’s why the movie relies so heavily on putting mere mortals like Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen in peril to create any real stakes.
Nearly 50 years later, “Superman: The Movie” still holds up surprisingly well. Sure, modern audiences might roll their eyes at the dated special effects — cutting edge in 1978, but quaint now. The pacing, too, could have been tighter: the Smallville sequence either drags on too long or doesn’t go deep enough to justify its length. Some of those scenes might have been more compelling with Christopher Reeve himself, rather than Jeff East playing teenage Clark. Still, considering this was the first true big-budget superhero film, it’s remarkable how solid a foundation it laid. Its blend of sincerity, wonder, and larger-than-life adventure became the blueprint for an entire generation of comic book movies in the early 2000s — a testament to just how much “Superman: The Movie” got right.
